Love's Most Difficult Path: Blumiere and Timpani
by Jeaun Du Jeair
Summary: This is the love story and tragedy of Blumiere and Timpani. I am filling in the spaces between the flashbacks in Super Paper Mario.
1. The First Day with Timpani

_The First Day with Timpani_

The room was out of focus as I opened my eyes and I felt a stabbing pain. My head felt like it was about to explode and I groaned aloud. Quickly a figure appeared by my side and spoke, "My goodness, are you awake at last?"

The room I was in finally came into focus, and it was certainly _not _familiar surroundings. The figure I saw was a _human_ girl! "Where… am I? Is this… a human's home?" I chose to make a noise befitting the circumstances. My father had taught me much about humans; they were not creatures to be admired.

This was confirmed by my own small experience with humans. I once met two human girls walking along a forest path. One screamed and ran while the other one fainted. They were definitely _not_ worthy of respect.

Ignoring my tone of disgust she warned me to quit moving so much. I had tried shifting in the bed I lay upon, and indeed, the room swam out of focus for a moment as I felt a wave of nausea roll over me. She continued on explaining this mysterious circumstance in which I found myself, "I found you at the cliff base. You took quite a fall."

I noticed that she was quite calm; this was rather odd considering that I was supposedly viewed as a hideous blue monster to this girl. The other two had acted just as Father said, why wasn't she? Just to make sure the fall hadn't made me completely loose my mind, "You're a human, correct? I don't… repulse you? I am of the Tribe of Darkness."

She instantly responded, "Why would that matter? Anyone with a heart would not ignore an injured soul!"

I was shocked at the conviction with which she spoke. She truly did not care that I was of the Tribe of Darkness! A human who was not afraid of my kind! I was definitely intrigued at this point. I wanted to talk to the girl who spoke rather than screamed in my presence. I kept up light chatter as she gave me some water and sat down on a chair near the bed.

I tried sitting up straighter, and once more the room swam as I nearly dropped the glass she had just given me. Her hand shot out and supported mine before I broke anything. She glared at me and spoke sternly, "You really shouldn't try to move until you feel better."

I groaned and replied, "I feel fine until I move." I closed my eyes and rubbed my temples willing the dizziness to stop again.

She giggled this time and said, "I feel that I should get you some orange juice. You look like some of the men after they wake up after the royal feast. Mom says that she always gives them orange juice when they look like that."

I laughed hard, "I am not hung over! And you never did answer my question. Where are we? ... Wait, wait, wait! Royal feast? You should also explain how you got invited to that."

"Yeash, so many questions. Very well, then. This is my parents' vacation home. It is actually pretty close to the castle, but the cliff obviously covers up the view from the beach. As you can imagine, anyone with enough money for two homes can obtain an invite to the royal feast. My mom's a nurse at the castle and my father is a successful businessman. I feel that there are two important questions I've neglected until now though. Who are you? How did you fall? My name's Timpani, by the way."

"I am very glad to meet you, Timpani; my name is Blumiere. Your second question is indeed pressing, and at the moment no explanation comes to mind… How did I manage to fall off of a cliff?" I chuckled under my breath, thinking about how ridiculous that question would be under any other circumstance. Truth be told, it seemed ridiculous even in this situation…

I began racking my brain trying to remember anything, starting with some of my earliest memories before the fall just to make sure I didn't have any memory loss. I didn't appear to have memory loss as I remembered a great deal of my past enterprises… Ah, the foolishness of my youth. Timpani looked at me curiously as I laughed aloud multiple times while I reminisced.

Finally, I remembered my mundane breakfast yesterday (or was it longer?), and my decision to go exploring. "I do… actually remember how I came to fall off that cliff."

"Do tell!"

"Well, it started with my decision to go exploring… How many days ago? How long have I been unconscious?"

"Less than a day."

"Ok, wonderful, it started with my decision to go exploring yesterday after breakfast. I live quite a long way to the east of the castle, but I wanted to see if I could get close to the castle using ghost flashing. The people of the Tribe of Darkness are able to move swiftly by moving like a ghost, by levitating and flying at something quickly. It creates a small image of ourselves flash shortly behind us as we move, hence the name. Moving like that is really quite exhilarating and so I just kept on going, ignoring the weariness that was building up as I moved towards the most forbidden place of my culture.

After about half an hour I reached the outskirts of town and saw the castle, but a guard also saw me. As I'm sure you're well aware, people of the Tribe of Darkness are considered criminals in your area, and that guard and three others began to chase me." My emotions of the memories were starting to get to me, and I was all but seething at how the guards had treated me. I had done nothing and yet they chased me out of the town like a dog begging for scraps. I knew that Father was right in his hatred of humans! How those guards disgusted me!

I gritted me teeth in anger and continued, "Normally, this would not be a problem because ghost running for even a brief period of time will shake off all but the best hunters, and I am quite capable of powerful attacks if necessary! That thirty minute joy run had exhausted my magical reserves, though, so I had to run as if I were a weakling human!" I was in a rage at this point at my own foolishness and at the guards behavior, but I remembered my surrounding and looked at Timpani again. I saw fear in her eyes and realized I had scared and offended her. I knew I needed to calm down and not let my anger get the best of me if I was not to scare her away. I waited a moment breathing deeply.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry for scaring you like that. I did not mean to... I ran like a human from them," I said much more calmly. "The guards were able to herd me like a dog herds sheep, and I did not know they were herding me towards the cliff. When I finally realized what they were doing, I was already flying without wings. Next thing I remember is waking up with metaphorical knives stabbing my brain, and a human girl who thinks I look hung over next to me."

Timpani laughed slightly at this, but quickly regained her seriousness. "I can not believe that there are such horrific acts of cruelty being commited in my town. You could've died from that fall!"

"I think that was more or less the point…" I said as I shifted my eyes trying to avoid her intense gaze.

She broke off her gaze as well as she composed herself. Her anger had riled her up the same way my own anger had just a moment before. After a few breaths, she had calmed down, "Why are you criminals? So far all you have done is shown me kindness. You do not seem to be an evil being, and even when you encountered those guards your plan was simply to ghost run."

"We have the Dark Prognosticus, a book of dark prophecies." I shuddered at the thought; all the horrible things done because of that book. "My ancestors were fools for trying to use the power of it. I was thankful that it had not been used in such a long time… That book is why there are legends of our tribe being evil, and is mostly why we are not welcome here. Also, I am less aggressive than most of my tribesmen. It is unusual to find a member of the Tribe of Darkness that is as peaceful as I am."

"Hmm, so those legends are true?" Timpani murmured to herself. She looked back up and our gaze met once more. She flashed a small, shy smile at me and spoke with slightly more cheer, "Well I'm glad that I met someone like you. It's good to see someone going against the norm and being nice to me. My parents are not particularly high on the royalty scale and so most people at those feasts look down on me, and most people "below" me who do like me are all rejected by my parents, even if I like them back." She sighed and shook her head.

In the silence that followed, I took note of her appearance. Despite her frightening paleness, she didn't look… bad (I always thought the girls I had met looked deathly ill, but apparently all humans are just colored like they're about to revisit lunch). Nonetheless, her eyes were a beautiful shade of green and her hair was rather short and a light brown. Her face was also short and slightly rounded. I liked the difference between her face and the angular faces of my own kind. It was one of those details I knew I would hold onto: Timpani's face while she was in thought. She gave her head another small shake and looked back up; I wondered what she had been thinking about.

"Well, I think about an hour has passed. Do you feel much better?"

Had it truly been only an hour? It felt so much longer than that!

I consciously sat up completely straight. Nothing. I began to stand up and Timpani told me to wait a moment. She went around the bed to the side where I was getting up, and offered me her hand. I accepted it gladly, but the kind gesture was unnecessary because I learned quickly that my sense of balance and stability had returned. I checked to see if my magic was back as well, and sure enough a small black flame lit in my hand at my command. I released the flame and saw her staring at where the flame had been.

I chose not to give any explanation for the fire. Her staring had made me feel like it was a crime to cast that spell, and I felt that our farewells were upon us. Timpani was no longer as happy as she had been just a while ago, and I was sure that this test of health was the transition to our departure. My suspicion was confirmed when she hugged me and began to speak quietly, "My parents let me stay here to get away from life for a few days. They were too busy to accompany me, and I really prefer it that way, but I must return soon. Now that I know you are well, I really should go back home; I was supposed to return before now. Blumiere, I cannot think of you as the monster everyone says you should be; you have shown that you are kind in just the little while I have known you."

The flame no longer felt like a crime, and Timpani no longer felt like she was an interesting anomaly amongst mankind, she felt like a friend to me. "Surely, it was you who was kind. I cannot thank you enough for saving my life and caring for me even though you probably thought of me as a monster at first. I will not keep you from your family any longer, but I must meet you again. Timpani, can you meet me here in a month? I will practice my ghost running so that I don't fall off a cliff each time I visit you."

She smiled and I found another image that would not leave my head soon, "I will be here in a month with some orange juice just in case."

I returned the smile and opened the door for her. Outside she hugged me once more and we said our last goodbyes. She began to walk towards the castle, while I began to find another way back to my home. With a flashing image of myself behind me, I went on my way back to the Tribe of Darkness.

* Note: All characters and the basic plot line of this story belong to Nintendo and the creators of Super Paper Mario and any other group that owns the right to this story. I have only filled in the space between the first two flashbacks of Tippi as best as I could.

Any comments and/or criticism is welcome. Also note that these stories won't be produced very quickly because of my busy schedule. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed the beginning of the love story of Blumiere and Timpani.


	2. Sigh, Back at Home

_Sigh, Back At Home_

This day should be ending right now. Yes, I wish I could be looking out my window at a fiery sunset or at the beautiful stars lighting up the sky, instead of seeing a blazing hot sun. It is not the heat that bothers me, but the sense of unreality. To have such a unique experience and simply return home and still have half a day to spend in boredom is certainly not what I want. I forgot how short my journey back home was; if I remembered, I probably would've stayed with Blumiere longer. What I wanted to forget was a sign I saw hung near the bell in the town center. I shivered slightly.

A knock on the door and my father peeping his head into my room broke the spell of my own thoughts. "Hello, dear. I thought I heard you come in. Why didn't you say hello to us? Your mother was beginning to worry."

"I'm sorry. I was just thinking a lot and didn't want to disturb you."

"It's alright. You should join us in the living room when you're ready to face the rest of the day and get out of bed. Miranda wants to know how your vacation was… You aren't sick, are you?

"No, no, no! I'm fine, just thinking."

"Alright, it does no good to lay around all day though, so please do join us in the near future."

"Ok, Daddy." I paused for a moment, and then added on. "I love you."

"I love you, too." He smiled at me and gently closed the door. I was shaking slightly, thinking about what I should say to my parents about my vacation. Should I tell them about Blumiere? What were their thoughts on "the Tribe of Darkness?" Would they disapprove of my newfound friend? Could I bring up the topic of "the Tribe of Darkness" without arousing their suspicion? Most importantly, if I did tell them, would they understand?

I considered my for a moment…

"Mom and Dad haven't ever been that angry with me. They have always been understanding when I told them about my problems and my life. I think they don't mind strangers much, like the time that young man from Yold Town came to our castle and Dad had to show him around. They didn't seem to mind him, a foreigner… Would they consider Blumiere a different kind of foreigner, though? A worse kind? I guess I'll just ask about the Tribe of Darkness and see what they think. If they don't mind, I will tell them, if not, I had a very boring vacation. I hope I'm doing the right thing…"

I sighed, walked out of my room, and quietly entered the living room. "Hello, Mom. Hello, Dad."

"Ah, sweetie! You should've dropped in earlier. Your father and I were discussing a nice dance you could attend and maybe talk more with that very nice boy… Oh, what was his name?"

"Cedric," I said quietly. He was nice, but rather dull. Cedric also smelled like a musty old library, which is where he spent most of his time. It made sense to me.

"Yes! Cedric! I think he's a very nice boy. You could do worse than him, Tippi."

"I know, Mom. Please, though, can we talk about something else?"

"Just consider it. What do you want to talk about then?"

I steeled myself quickly because I was very afraid of what I had seen. I wanted to appear unconcerned and not frightened out of my wits, "Well, on my way home I saw an edict that said, 'Whosoever has information on the whereabouts of or captures a 'member of the Tribe of Darkness' seen recently by the Royal Guard must come to the King with the tribesman or information and shall receive just compensation for their assistance.' What is the Tribe of Darkness?"

My parents thought for a moment. Mom said, "Well, I don't believe in whatever the officials say about them. I've never seen any of them, and I definitely haven't seen or even heard of a 'Tribesman of Darkness' hurting anybody all the time I've lived here."

My father continued on hesitantly, "Well, dear… I think you shouldn't worry about that edict. They seem to avoid us as much as we avoid them, and so I think this was just a false alarm. You're safe, Tippi.

But if you do see someone with very dark blue skin and feel unsafe, then you can tell the authorities because that is what Tribesmen supposedly look like. They are rumored to have the Dark Prognosticus, and it caused great havoc a long time ago; you've heard the stories, I'm sure. Because of that and some of their weird fabled abilities, most everybody in town believes they are evil. I have no proof for or against this though, and I think we should just let the past die. They apparently haven't touched that book of prophecy in hundreds of years, if there ever actually was one."

"Ok." I said still being very quiet and very unsure of how to proceed. Dad might not mind me telling him about my weekend… "Mom, what do you think of them?"

"I agree with your father on this one. They don't mean any harm, haven't ever hurt anybody that I've heard of in the past century. I don't think they're out to get us or anybody else." I thought for another moment. I guess I would have a story to prove their suspicions. I became friends with a Tribesman and wanted to see him again. What was wrong with me?

His kindness. His smile. His laugh. Becoming friends with Blumiere was not a mistake.

I spoke softly with my heart racing like a sprinter, "Well… I have an interesting story to tell you guys about my week in our cabin, and it involves a Tribesman."

"What do you mean?" my mother asked. My dad just looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, um, I met one during my stay there. He fell off the cliff right by our cottage, and I helped him recover. The Tribesman was nice and didn't try to hurt me, and I sort of want to see him again." I ended in a rush. My nerves were getting the better of me, and I was afraid I would not have the will to finish my story if I didn't tell it at that moment.

Still with a raised eyebrow, my father asked in a voice almost as quiet as my own, "You want to seehim again? I… I… I don't know what to think… He didn't hurt you and was nice." My father repeated my words even quieter and shook his head. "I guess I thought it was possible, but still, I never expected my own daughter to meet one and actually find this out. Miranda? What do you think of this whole situation?"

"I'm very nervous about it all. I may think it's wrong to hunt them down for what they are, but that does not make them safe to become attached to. They are considered criminals here, and I do not want my daughter to be associating with criminals, even nice ones. Spending time with this Tribesman would be just as bad as spending time with a murderer according to our law, and I will not condone that. Do not attempt to see him again. I'm sorry, but it's for the best," my mom told me sympathetically. Apparently she could see some of the emotion I was experiencing, even though I was trying my hardest to keep my face blank.

My father was also watching me with a very solemn face as he pronounced his judgment, "I agree with Miranda. She brings up very good reasons not to see him. It would be a very dangerous idea to try to meet with this Tribesman again. It is not because of what he is like: I trust you when you say that this Tribesman is kind, but it is because the law says they are criminals and will punish you for meeting him again."

"Alright, I won't go see him then." I broke eye contact with me father as I said that.

The fact that I was telling a lie made me want to cry even more, but I couldn't cry. My vision was already blurry from tears forming, and I held them back.

I thought, "Why is everyone so mean to one of the nicest people I have met? Why won't my parents let me see Blumiere again when they know nothing about him apart from what he is? They won't even attempt to see him to learn that he is kind! I am confident that Blumiere will not have the same trouble with the Royal Guard again, so we wouldn't have to worry about them to see him again."

I accepted the fact that my parents would not change their minds and felt very sad. Mom would be so happy if I met a normal human that had a personality anywhere close to Blumiere's, but instead she had to strongly disapprove because of that accursed law. I wiped my eyes and muttered something unintelligible.

"Hmm?" my parents spoke in unison.

"I'm going to my room to write some poetry. It looks very pretty outside, and I might be able to think of a good poem." I stood up, turned on my heel, and left my parents alone in the living room.

That statement was not a lie. I usually feel better after writing something. Usually, I write free verse poetry, and this would be no different. I hate the constrictions of all the other forms of poetry.

I got to my room and took out a blank sheet and looked out the window. My wish had finally come true. There was a flaming sunset outside, and I admired the view and quickly began to write.

"Sunset"

Finally, rays of red, orange, gold, blue, and purple alight  
>The sky is a rainbow as day turns to night<br>As light turns to dark

I am not happy though  
>Perhaps the darkness understands me<br>The fools who don't know anything  
>Are the ones who make the rules<p>

They choose to worship light and despise the dark  
>They can see no beauty after the sun goes down<br>When the sun goes down, they do not see at all

Blumiere is dark they say  
>The fools hate him because of old wounds<br>The world _cannot_ let the past die

They cannot see who he is  
>I see a spark of kindness<br>They see a monster!

It is dark  
>The stars are shining<br>Their light is cold though

It does not change that the men in charge  
>Still hate the innocent<br>And try to kill good people

The darkness cannot change who rules  
>It understands me, but it cannot help.<br>Why do you not help your brother, Darkness?

Blumiere is not understood either. Does anybody love him?  
>Is he alone like me? No friends that truly care.<br>I don't have a friend besides your brother, Darkness. Nobody is truly kind to me.

Darkness, you are not strong at all  
>Neither am I<br>We can't defeat this foe

My parents are under this cloud of hate  
>So is everyone else<p>

But I just want a friend.  
>I want Blumiere to be a friend<br>Without the hatred of the world.

Why can't I have a friend?

I got close to tears as I wrote down my thoughts. When I thought of the last line, it struck me that I really didn't. The one friend I had really made, who was really kind to me, who didn't have any prejudice against me that I had seen, was the one I was forbidden to see again.

I looked at the stars one more time, and though someone somewhere must be saying they are dancing in the sky, I say they are just sitting there; they do not dance for me. Their beauty will not comfort me tonight.

I cried myself to sleep.

* Note: All characters and the basic plot line of this story belong to Nintendo and the creators of Super Paper Mario and any other group that owns the right to this story. I have only filled in the space between the first two flashbacks of Tippi as best as I could.

Any comments and/or criticism is welcome. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed the beginning of the love story/tragedy of Blumiere and Timpani. Sorry for such a long time between chapters. It's summer now, so hopefully I'll produce chapters in less than 3 months or however long this one took.


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